Financial Conduct Authority

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is the UK's conduct regulator for financial services. It operates independently from the government, funded entirely by fees charged to the firms it oversees. Its core mission is to protect consumers, ensure market integrity, and promote competition across the industry. The FCA sets rules that cover everything from how banks treat customers to how investment firms handle risk, affecting both everyday retail banking and high-stakes wholesale trading.

Legally structured as a company limited by guarantee, the FCA traces its roots back to the Financial Services Authority (FSA), which was split in 2013. That year, the FCA took over conduct regulation while the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) assumed responsibility for the financial health of major firms. The two bodies work alongside the Bank of England's Financial Policy Committee, creating a three-part regulatory framework designed to prevent another financial crisis.

The scale of the FCA's remit is enormous. It oversees roughly 58,000 businesses that collectively employ 2.2 million people and generate around £65.6 billion in annual tax revenue for the UK economy. Its powers include authorizing firms, investigating misconduct, imposing fines, and even banning products. In recent years, the FCA has increasingly focused on consumer protection, cracking down on unfair lending practices, and addressing risks in emerging areas like cryptocurrency and buy-now-pay-later services. [edit]